Disclosure: ReelMusic, entry 10, is our own product and is marked as such. It is not ranked first, because this list is not a ranking: it is grouped by what each source is, and every entry has a case where it is the right choice. Competitor prices and terms are quoted from their public pages.
How the list was judged
Four criteria, in this order, because the first one decides whether the other three matter.
- Licence. Does the plan a business needs cover commercial posts, paid promotion and client work, and on which platforms? What happens to published videos when you stop paying?
- Cost. The price of that plan, monthly and annual, not the cheapest plan on the page.
- Effort per video. How many steps from a clip in Photos to a posted video: searching, downloading, editing, trimming, transferring.
- Fit to footage. Whether the music is chosen or made for the clip, and how much fitting is left to you.
Short-form video is where this matters most. HubSpot's 2026 State of Marketing survey of more than 3,400 marketers ranks short-form video the top ROI-driving format, and DataReportal's Digital 2026 report puts short-form video at 58% of all time spent on social media. The music on those videos is the part most businesses get wrong, not because they are careless but because the platform picker looks like permission.
49%of marketers rank short-form video the top ROI-driving format. HubSpot State of Marketing 2026, 3,400+ marketers.
58%of time spent on social media goes to short-form video. DataReportal, Digital 2026.
€5,300plus VAT, one warning letter for one Instagram video on a business account. Händlerbund, July 2026.
Free platform libraries
1Meta Sound Collection
FreeFacebook and Instagram onlyCleared for business accounts and Meta ads
Meta's own library of royalty-free music and sound effects, and the only in-app music a Business account on Instagram or Facebook can use. Third-party guides put it at roughly 14,000 tracks; Meta publishes no count. Cleared for organic posts, boosted posts and ads on Meta's platforms. Not a licence for the same video anywhere else, and shared by every business on the platform.
Right for: a business that posts only on Instagram and Facebook and never reuses the video. Guide: Music for Instagram Reels on a business account.
2TikTok Commercial Music Library
FreeTikTok onlyOrganic posts and TikTok ads
TikTok's help centre describes it as "a global music library of 1 million songs" from independent artists and music houses. It is what a Business account sees in the sound picker, filterable by region, placement, genre, mood and duration, and cleared "for organic or paid content" on TikTok. CapCut's licence for the same catalogue limits use to CapCut, TikTok and TikTok for Business.
Right for: TikTok-only businesses. Guide: Music for TikTok business accounts.
3YouTube Audio Library
FreeYouTubeNo Content ID claims; some tracks need a credit
Free music and sound effects inside YouTube Studio. YouTube states that tracks from the Audio Library "won't be claimed by a rights holder through the Content ID system" and can be used in monetized videos; tracks under a Creative Commons licence must be credited in the description. YouTube also says it "can't give legal guidance" for use off the platform, so treat it as YouTube-only.
Right for: Shorts and long-form on YouTube at zero cost. Guide: Copyright-free music for YouTube Shorts.
Stock subscriptions
4Epidemic Sound
Business use: Pro from $16.99/mo annual, $39.99 month to monthAll platformsUnlimited downloads
The largest name in stock music for creators, with a catalogue commissioned from its own artists plus sound effects and voice-over credits. The Creator plan ($9.99 annual, $17.99 monthly) is for personal content on one channel per platform and excludes client work and ads; Pro covers client work, commercial content and digital ads on three channels per platform; Business ($30 annual, $75 monthly) adds company marketing and a second user. Videos published while subscribed stay cleared; videos published with its music after cancelling are claimed. Channels must be safelisted to avoid Content ID claims.
Right for: businesses and agencies that post across formats and platforms at volume and edit on a desktop. Comparison: ReelMusic vs Epidemic Sound.
5Artlist
Business use: Music & SFX Pro $24.92/mo annual onlyAll platforms, ads, client workSocial plan is personal-only
A music, sound-effects and footage platform. The Music & SFX Social plan ($9.99 annual, $14.99 monthly) covers one personal channel per platform and "does not cover client projects"; the Pro licence covers "client work, paid ads, websites, podcasts, broadcast and TV" and three channels per platform. Published projects stay licensed after the plan ends; new projects with old downloads do not.
Right for: video producers who also need footage and templates, and businesses that want broadcast coverage in the same licence.
6Uppbeat
Free plan with credit; Premium $6.99/mo; Business $18.99/moCreator-focused20% off on yearly billing
A creator-first library with a genuinely useful free tier: three downloads a month from a limited catalogue, with a credit line pasted into the description. Premium removes the credit requirement and safelists your channel; the Business plan is the tier aimed at company use. Read the licence page for the exact scope of business, ads and client use on each plan before relying on it, because the tiers are built around YouTube creators first.
Right for: solo creators on a budget who mostly post to YouTube and Instagram.
7Soundraw
Creator from €5.83/mo annualCommercial use includedLicence persists after cancelling
An AI-assisted library where you set mood, genre and length and adjust the generated track by section. The Creator plan includes commercial use, background music and even streaming distribution, and Soundraw states that "anything you make while you're subscribed stays licensed for life, even if you cancel later". Prices on its site are shown in euros. Web-based; you download and add the track in an editor.
Right for: businesses that want adjustable instrumental beds at a low price and do not mind a browser workflow.
Generators
8Suno
Pro $8/mo, $6.40 annualFull songs with vocals from a promptFree tier: no commercial use
The best-known song generator: type a description and lyrics, get a full track with vocals. Pro (2,500 credits, up to 500 songs a month) and Premier carry "commercial use rights for new songs made", and Suno's terms assign its rights in those songs to you while stating it makes no warranty that any copyright vests. The free tier is personal-use only. Two things to know: Universal and Sony's lawsuit over Suno's training data continues (Warner settled), and a Munich court ruled against Suno in a GEMA case in July 2026. Songs are minutes long; you trim them to the clip in an editor.
Right for: jingles, brand songs, anything with vocals, music as the product. Comparison: ReelMusic vs Suno.
9ElevenLabs Music
Commercial from Starter, $6/mo ($5 annual)900 credits per minute of musicFree tier: attribution, no commercial use
Music inside the ElevenLabs voice platform: prompt-driven, vocals optional, credits shared with speech and dubbing. Starter's 30,000 credits are about 33 minutes of music a month; Creator ($22) about 134 minutes. ElevenLabs states the model is trained on licensed music; self-serve plans exclude enterprise-only uses such as TV and radio distribution, per its music terms. Browser and API; there is also a video-to-music tool in its Studio.
Right for: anyone already making voice-over on ElevenLabs, and developers. Comparison: ReelMusic vs ElevenLabs Music.
10 · OUR PRODUCTReelMusic
Monthly $14.99; Yearly $99.99; Weekly $7.99; credit packsiPhone onlyComposed from the video
Our app, so read this entry with that in mind. ReelMusic reads a clip's mood, pace and cuts and composes an original instrumental track to fit it, usually in about a minute; you position it on the cuts, set fades, and export the finished video to Photos. Paid-plan tracks carry a worldwide, perpetual, non-exclusive commercial licence that covers business accounts, paid ads and client work inside the delivered video, and the licence survives cancellation. No vocals, no catalogue, no desktop or Android version, and a monthly allowance of tracks rather than unlimited downloads. Prices as listed on the App Store on 7 September 2026.
Right for: business and creator accounts posting Reels, TikToks and Shorts from an iPhone who want music that fits the clip without searching or prompting.
Also considered: Mubert, whose Creator plan ($14 a month) is non-commercial with commercial use starting at Pro ($39), and Beatoven and Loudly, which are aimed more at developers and long-form scoring than at a phone-first business workflow.
A note on CapCut's built-in music
CapCut is where a large share of business short videos are edited, and its music library is the most common way a cleared-looking video ends up not cleared. CapCut's Materials License Agreement says standard sounds are provided "so long as the video content is only for personal entertainment and non-commercial purposes", and that commercial sounds may be shown "within CapCut, TikTok and TikTok for Business" only, with any other use requiring "separate permission" from the rights holders. Edit in CapCut by all means; bring the music from one of the ten sources above.
Comparison table
| Source | Plan a business needs | Price per month | Platforms covered | Ads | Client work | After cancelling | Effort per video |
|---|
| Meta Sound Collection | n/a | Free | Facebook, Instagram | On Meta | On client's Meta accounts | n/a | Search, trim in app |
| TikTok Commercial Music Library | n/a | Free | TikTok | On TikTok | On TikTok | n/a | Search, trim in app |
| YouTube Audio Library | n/a | Free | YouTube | On YouTube | On YouTube | n/a | Download, add in editor |
| Epidemic Sound | Pro | $16.99 annual / $39.99 monthly | All online | Digital ads | Yes | Published videos stay cleared; new ones claimed | Search, download, edit, trim |
| Artlist | Music & SFX Pro | $24.92 annual only | All, incl. broadcast | Yes | Yes | Published projects stay licensed | Search, download, edit, trim |
| Uppbeat | Business (check scope) | $18.99 | All online | Check licence | Check licence | Check licence | Search, download, edit, trim |
| Soundraw | Creator | from €5.83 annual | All online | Yes | Check licence | Licensed for life | Set parameters, download, edit |
| Suno | Pro | $8 / $6.40 annual | All | Yes | Check terms | Songs made while subscribed keep rights | Prompt, download, edit, trim |
| ElevenLabs Music | Starter | $6 / $5 annual | All except enterprise-only uses | Yes | Yes | Per current terms | Prompt, download, edit, align |
| ReelMusic (ours) | Any paid plan | $14.99 / $8.33 on yearly | All online | Yes | Inside the delivered video | Generated tracks stay licensed | Pick clip, generate, position, export |
Which to pick for a shop, a studio, an agency, a solo creator
A shop or café posting on Instagram only
Start with the Meta Sound Collection; it is free and cleared for boosting. Move to a generator or a stock plan the day you start reposting to TikTok or YouTube, because the Sound Collection licence stops at Meta's door.
A gym, salon or studio posting daily on two or three platforms
You need music that travels with the file and fits fast-cut footage. ReelMusic if you shoot and post on an iPhone and want the track made for the clip; Epidemic Sound Pro if you edit batches on a desktop and want one brand sound across everything.
An agency or social media manager with several client accounts
The licence has to name client work. Epidemic Sound Pro or Business and Artlist Pro do, with channel limits per platform; ReelMusic passes the licence to the client inside the delivered video, which is simpler for short video and unsuitable if the client wants the bare audio.
A solo creator or freelancer building a personal brand
Sponsored posts are commercial even on a creator account. Uppbeat Premium or Soundraw Creator are the cheapest paid routes; a generator gives you a sound nobody else is using. Keep trending sounds for the posts where you are allowed to use them.
FAQ
What is the cheapest music source that is safe for a business account?
The platforms' own commercial libraries are free: the Meta Sound Collection on Facebook and Instagram, the Commercial Music Library on TikTok, and the YouTube Audio Library on YouTube. Each is cleared only for its own platform.
Is a personal stock-music plan enough for a business Instagram?
No. Epidemic Sound's Creator plan and Artlist's Social plan cover personal channels and exclude client work and ads. A business account needs the Pro or Business tier.
Can I use CapCut's built-in music for my business videos?
Only the Commercial Sounds, and only on CapCut, TikTok and TikTok for Business. CapCut's licence says standard sounds are for personal, non-commercial use and that use outside those platforms needs separate permission.
Are AI music generators safe for commercial use?
On paid plans that include commercial rights, yes, within each provider's terms. Free tiers of Suno, ElevenLabs and Mubert exclude commercial use. Check whether the licence covers ads and client work and whether it survives cancellation.
Which option is best if I post on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube?
One that travels with the file: a stock library on a commercial plan, or original music you hold the licence for. The platform libraries are each limited to their own platform.
